Soup is nourishing and savory. It satisfies without overfilling. I love this soup with a grilled American cheese sandwich. This is comfort food deluxe. And no, it isn’t a Campbell’s type recipe. This is the real deal, delicious too.

This is a loosely adapted recipe originally written by Tom Douglas that I discovered one Sunday afternoon while listening to the Splendid Table. The simple ingredient recipe comes together in about 15 minutes. What I love about this Tomato Soup recipe is that it makes a perfectly, not in the canned kind of way, satisfying bowl of soup. It’s easy and is modifiable. Simple. You probably have these ingredients on hand. Whatever you do, don’t head out to the grocery store to gather up ingredients. Check the pantry first. Be willing to make substitutions… No canned tomatoes? Do you have fresh? What about tomato sauce or crushed tomatoes? That would work too. Grab that bottle of Northern Michigan Merlot, or a tasty Blaufrankisch and let’s go!

Oh, another note- an immersion blender is really useful, but a standard blender is OK too.

Bon Appetit!

Tomato Soup with Brown Butter Croutons and possible modifications

Ingredients

Soup:

1 TBSP unsalted butter
1 TBSP olive oil
1 medium onion (any onion will work- white, yellow, red, leeks, pearl)
3 garlic cloves smashed ( i used pickled)
5 cups canned diced tomatoes
1 cup water
1/3 half and half ( substitute milk, cream, non-diary milk or none)
2 tsp. kosher salt
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper, plus more
1/4 tsp. celery seed (can use celery leaves/ celery salt- but be sure to omit equivalent salt at other points in this recipe)
1/2 tsp. dried oregano (can use basil, thyme)
pinch tsp. chipotle pepper ( red pepper flakes, any touch of hot)
1/2 TBSP sugar ( or leave it out)

Brown Butter Croutons

3 TBSP unsalted butter ( salted butter)
4 slices baguette or european style bread, cut into 3/4 to 1 inch cubes, salt and pepper

Instructions

1. Melt the butter along with the olive oil in a large saucepan. Saute the onion and garlic until the onion turns translucent about 5 minutes.

2. Add the canned tomatoes, water, spices, herbs and sugar. Bring to a boil , then lower the heat and let the soup simmer for 15 minutes.

3. Immersion blender; blend until desired creaminess. ( i like a few chunks of tomato ) Regular Blender; remove from heat and puree in batches. Return the soup to the pot and reheat to a simmer. Add seasonings to taste.

4. Stir in the cream or milk.

5. To make the croutons; preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Put your cut up bread cubes in a bowl. Heat the butter in a stainless small pan ( use a pan that you can see the butter browning) over medium heat. Stir often until the butter turns a golden brown. This will happen very quickly after about 3 minutes, be careful not to burn the butter. Immediately pour the brown butter over the bread cubes and toss to coat, along with a shake of salt and a smattering of pepper to your liking. Spread the cubes on a baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes until the cubes are golden in color. Remove the pan from the oven.

6. Soup’s ON! Garnish with golden browned butter croutons and any fresh or dried herbs…

7. Bon Appetit!